For Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Sustainable Development Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure is foundational to resilience, inclusion and long-term sustainability. In geographically dispersed island nations, infrastructure is not merely an economic input; it is the backbone of connectivity, service delivery, disaster preparedness and social cohesion. Innovation and inclusive industrialization offer critical pathways to overcome scale constraints, remoteness and vulnerability to climate change.
Yet progress toward SDG 9 across Pacific SIDS remains uneven. The Sustainable Development Goals Extended Report 2025 highlights persistent gaps in access to credit, digital connectivity and infrastructure quality. While more than 40 per cent of small firms in Pacific SIDS have access to loans, financing remains shallow and uneven, particularly for micro- and small family run and/or owned enterprises. At the same time, nearly one quarter of the Pacific SIDS population still lacks access to mobile broadband, limiting participation in the digital economy and access to essential services. These disparities threaten to entrench structural vulnerabilities unless addressed through coordinated, SIDS-specific policy action and effective implementation.
This policy brief synthesizes perspectives from Pacific SIDS governments, regional institutions, development partners and communities to outline a coherent pathway for accelerating SDG 9 aligned with the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent. It emphasizes climate-resilient infrastructure, innovative and blended financing, digital transformation, economic diversification and inclusive governance as mutually reinforcing pillars of sustainable development in Pacific SIDS.